I use tortillas in several ways: As a meal accompaniment like bread. It's nice to have one of those shallow baskets made for the purpose to keep them warm, covered by a napkin. For a taco, just rolled up around a shredded meat and salsa filling. For making enchiladas, which I love. In chilaquiles (a casserole sort of like a Mexican lasagna or a rustic form of enchiladas). Making your own tortillas is not complicated, but it takes a bit of a knack. I've seen Mexican women pat them out between their palms. Masa is a soft and tender dough. No gluten or stretchability at all. I can't form a tortilla by hand, even after several years of working with clay in the pottery studio. I have to use a tortilla press or improvised substitute. Bakeries use automated machinery. The critical part is the temperature of the comal (griddle) and timing the baking. When done well, they puff like pita bread, making a pocket inside. You help that along by "tickling" them, touching them with your finger tips, which presses them against the hot comal, creating a burst of steam inside. Are the ones you get solid or hollow? Commercial ones I have had usually were solid and not tender like tortillas casero (homemade), but are better than no tortillas at all. Good ones have just the right amount of charred spots, which gives a wonderful flavor and aroma. And I mean *wonderful aroma*. Driving through Mexican villages at a certain time of evening, the whole place smells of corn tortillas baking. I'm starting to salivate. So much goodness from two ingredients, masa and water. Yellow or white corn tortillas? I go for the white, but I can't give you a clear reason except that I think it is most typically Mexican. Jim

Oh, no! Bad sentence on my part. Southern California. We had a wonderful Syrian bakery that made brilliant pita. I still miss them. My heart breaks for what has happened there, but I've never been to Syria. You haven't said why you're eschewing "enriched flour" and don't need to, but white flour products are required by law to use vitamin enriched flour, and even most home baking white flour (bleached or unbleached) is enriched and has a little malted barley flour in it as well, which has a lot of an enzyme that's needed for rising. Unless you have a specific problem with one or more of the vitamins or the barley, the enrichment shouldn't be a problem. Maybe you're just concerned that there's white flour in there. White flour is often added to whole wheat flour to make the rise spongier. Sometimes vital wheat gluten is added to strengthen the gluten (the bran in the whole wheat can weaken or cut it). Wheat gluten can be isolated by hand by washing the wheat and kneading out the starch, and has been done for centuries, so it's not a weird industrial product. Anything that's made with white flour in the U.S. uses enriched flour. There may be some places that mill and sift their own flours that do not, but that's an extremely rare exception. Therefore, I would guarantee that the Lebanese pita are made with enriched flour. The thinner thing is probably a lack of leavening. Even in the Middle East, nowadays, the pita have leavening and are a bit spongy. That's not traditional. :) I haven't seen Kontos, and I'd guess it's an East Coast brand. I don't doubt that it's good! Whole Foods might be a better place to get 100% whole wheat, however, unless you can find a Middle Eastern or halal store where people are into the "new" kind of dietary laws (no white flour, pasture raise livestock, etc.). Maybe try stores near the colleges? College kids tend to be into better eating. Turlock is from California. I know they freeze to ship it to avoid preservatives, so you might find it there, but more likely the Whole Foods have something local. Good luck on your quest.

I use corn tortillas only when making enchiladas and flour for things like burritos. Jo, here are two tried and true enchilada recipes. Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table =================== Edited: April 20th, 2006 Deluxe Chicken Enchiladas Source:Barbara Hansen's Mexican Cookery 2 whole chicken breasts chicken broth 1/2 small onion 1 bay leaf 8 peppercorns garlic clove salt 1/2 medium onion chopped 3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese 1 cup shredded Monterey Jack Cheese 1 4 oz can green chilies garlic 1 13 oz can tomatillos, drained 1/4 cup cilantro leaves 3/4 cup whipping cream 1 egg salt 1/4 cup lard or oil 8 corn tortillas 1 cup cheddar or Monterey Jack Cheese Guacamole 1 cup sour cream lettuce black olives . Place chicken in large pot and cover with chicken broth. Add onion, bay leaf, peppercorns and salt. Simmer until tender. Let cool in broth. Remove chicken and save broth for another use. Shred or cut chicken to to smaller pieces. Add chopped onion, Parmesan cheese and Monterey Jack Cheese. Taste and add salt if needed. Set aside. IN a blender or processor, combine green chilies, tomatillos , cilantro, whipping cream and egg and blend until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste. Set aside. Preheat oven to 375F. Heat lard in small skillet. With tongs, carefully place one tortilla at a time in hot lard. Hold for 3 to 5 seconds and drain on paper towels. You want the tortillas to be softened but not crisp. Place some of the chicken mixture on the tortilla and roll tightly. Place seam-side down in a baking dish. Pour cream mixture over the Enchiladas and sprinkle evenly with 1 cup of cheddar or Monterey cheese. Bake about 20 minutes or until heated through and bubbly. Serve with sour cream, guacamole, lettuce and olives. NOTE: Instead of softening the corn tortillas in hot oil use the following Enchilada sauce. (Alternative Enchiladas Sauce) 4 tablespoons oil 5 tablespoons flour 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper 1 tablespoon chili powder 1 teaspoon cumin 1 garlic clove Heat the oil and add the flour, cayenne pepper, chili powder, cumin and garlic. Cook for a few minutes and add the chicken broth. 2 to 3 cups chicken broth Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table Stacked Enchiladas ================== Source: Southwest Cookbook Vegetable oil for frying 12 corn tortillas (6 inches) 1 1/2 cups (12 fl ounces) Green Chili Sauce (recipe on page 195) 2 cups (8 ounces) grated Monterey Jack or Cheddar Cheese 3/4 cups finely chopped onion Preheat oven to 350°F. Pour vegetable oil into a medium , heavy skilled to depth of 1/2 inch. Heat the oil over medium high heat to 375°F, or until a strip of tortilla browns in 60 seconds. Soften the tortillas, one at a time, for about 5 seconds per side in the hot oil and drain on paper towels. Heat the green chili sauce in a shallow pan and dip each softened tortilla into the sauce. Place 1 coated tortilla on an oven proof plate and top with 1 tablespoons green chili sauce, 2 tablespoons grated cheese and 1 tablespoon chopped onion; repeat twice so that 1 serving contains 3 layered tortillas. Repeat with the remaining ingredients to make 4 tortilla stacks. Bake the stacks for 3 to 5 minutes, or until the cheese melts. NOTE: Add cooked chicken and or pinto or black beans between layers. Green Chili Sauce 1 Jalapeño chili seeded and diced 1 garlic clove crushed 1/4 cup chopped green onions 4 tomatillo, husked and diced (or use canned) 1 1/2 cups chicken stock 2 new Mexico green or Anaheim chilies, roasted, peeled, cored, seeded and diced. 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice 1 tablespoon heavy cream salt and freshly ground pepper to taste In a medium saucepan, place the jalapeño , garlic, green onions, tomatillos and chicken stock. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat' reduce heat and simmer until the liquid is reduced to about 1 cup about 15 to 20 minutes. Pour the chicken stock mixture into a blender or food processor. Add the Anaheim chilies, cilantro and lime juice; puree until smooth. Add salt and pepper. Add the cream and mix again. Serve warm. Keep 1 to 2 days refrigerated.

No I do not believe a corn tortilla ever includes any baking powder. ..A real tortilla is a very very simple product. That is not to say that many fancy mexican places don't make them with extra ingredients but a real Mexican tortilla is a simple 2 ingredient bread. If you want them to puff up in the middle the way they do around the edges, just take a spatula and press the center area after you turn the tortilla..not hard...gently. I learned to make and cook them from Mexican women and most of them use their fingers or a clean dish towel and just gently press down on the tortilla and it will puff. You cook them for a few seconds (10 or 15) on one side until it starts to have a few brown spots,... flip and cook this side for a few seconds...press it very lightly to make sure it is in contact with the griddle...It doesn't take long but they get a definite color change with browned spots and this will make a tortilla puffy.,,,I cook my tortillas on a heavy duty comal but a non stick skillet will work. They may not look as puffy after you take them off the grill but they will be two sided like pita with lots of puffiness...They do need to be nice and thin to start with as well. I think what kfc made might be very tasty but she asked for a corn tortilla recipe and what she made was not a corn tortilla and probably isn't going to be the dreamed of puffy home made tortilla de maize...